Tag: 10.24.00

THE REAL PAUL BOWLES?

It’s been a year since Paul Bowles died in Morocco. But the picture of him as the expat recluse is not very accurate. And tributes on the anniversary of his death aren’t likely to get at the meat of his life. “The idea that Bowles preferred to live in isolation from the world – because he never moved back to New York – is an enabling fiction: it lets journalists and critics off the hook for not bothering to learn about Morocco or Bowles’s life there.” – Feed

PROTECTING INDIGENOUS WORK

Some 2,500 indigenous artists from 26 countries across the world are on their way to to Noumea, New Caledonia for a festival. “But many of the local Kanak artists have decided actions speak louder than words, and have voted to boycott the international festival which begins today and includes a delegation of more than 100 Australian indigenous artists. New Caledonia’s paucity of copyright legislation is at the heart of the dispute.” – Sydney Morning Herald 10/24/00

ART AND NEWSPAPERS

London’s Guardian newspaper has hired an artist-in-residence. He is Michael Atavar, and “playing the role of idiot savant outsider, he may illuminate some aspect of our work, or he may add previously unimagined meaning to it. Then again, he may just shrug and wander off. It really doesn’t matter. In a giant shift of culture, we’re trying not to be prescriptive: so no deadlines, no brief, and no project as such.” – The Guardian 10/24/00

SMARTER FOR THE ARTS?

A new Canadian study is investigating whether arts education helps children do better in math, reading and writing. The study is also looking at race and socio-economic factors that may play a factor in a child’s involvement in the arts. – CBC 10/24/00

COURTING CONTROVERSY

  • Works by the four artists shortlisted for this year’s Turner Prize have gone on view at London’s Tate Britain. The UK’s premier art award, the Turner (which will be announced next month) has developed a reputation for generating substantial controversy – Damien Hirst’s sheep in formaldehyde and Chris Ofili’s cow-dung paintings were past winners – and this year’s no different. Only one finalist is actually British, to the consternation of many. – BBC

    • A SPECIAL SECTION ON THE TURNER PRIZE – The Guardian

    • “The shortlist for this year’s Turner Prize is the most balanced and serious since 1996.” – The Telegraph (UK)

THE ABCs OF ART APPRECIATION

The first in a week-long discussion of John Armstrong’s new book “Move Closer,” a primer for “those who sweat when confronted with art” on the pleasures of viewing. “Can a stubbornly unvisual person – someone who might love a picture but might be unable to describe it coherently five minutes later – be taught to see things differently, in a less ham-handed way?” – Slate

TOTAL WORLD DOMINATION

The Guggenheim seems bent on being the Starbucks of the art world – one on every corner. “The combined Guggenheim collections now run to 8,000 paintings, sculptures and installations and the pace of expansion seems unstoppable, feeding on a barely tapped global appetite for democratic art in spectacular surroundings.” – The Independent (UK)

  • AND MORE POWER TO THEM: Two of the most prestigious art institutions in the world, the Solomon R Guggenheim Foundation of New York and the State Hermitage Museum of St Petersburg, have reached a conclusion that, until even a few years ago, would have seemed insane. Las Vegas, better known as a desert shrine to all that is base and gaudy, neon and greedy, is actually an ideal place to show fine art. – The Independent (UK)